Meet the 2016 Golden Spikes Award Candidates

Projected to be one of the top selections in the 2016 MLB First-Year Player Draft, Kyle Lewis has been a consistent performer at the plate for the Mercer Bears. The outfielder is batting .411 and totaled 64 runs and 64 RBIs during the regular season. The junior leads the Bears in hits (85), home runs (17), walks (61), slugging percentage (.729) and on-base percentage (.545). Lewis was recently named Southern Conference Player of the Year for the second consecutive season.

Clemson's Seth Beer jumped on the scene as a freshman and delivered in a big way, becoming the first-ever freshman to win the ACC Player of the Year award. Beer led the Tigers with a .378 batting average, 15 home runs and 52 walks to just 21 strikeouts. He also recorded a 26-game hitting streak, the fourth-longest in program history, to help Clemson to 38 regular-season wins.

Corey Ray was named to the All-ACC first team for the second straight season in 2016, powered by a .326 batting average and 14 home runs. Ray, who is among the top MLB prospects in 2016, leads the ACC in stolen bases with 37 and started all 56 games for Louisville while playing all three outfield positions and hitting at the top of the order.

Recently named the 2016 SEC Pitcher of the Year, Logan Shore finished the season with a perfect 10-0 record. Shore was also named to the All-SEC first team with a 2.33 ERA and 76 strikeouts in 85 innings pitched.

Jake Burger turned in one of the best offensive performances in the country this season, ranking among the nation's leaders in home runs (19), RBIs (62), total bases (143) and slugging percentage (.715). A Midseason All-America choice at third base by D1Baseball, he led the Bears with 16 multi-RBI performances, including 13 games in which he drove in at least three runs.

Recently named Conference USA Player of the Year, shortstop C.J. Chatham has proved to be an asset at the plate for Florida Atlantic with an impressive slugging percentage of .707. He has also tallied 17 doubles and hit seven home runs. With 84 hits on the season, Chatham scored 47 runs and had 47 RBIs.

Zack Collins has proven to be a dominant force at the plate in the ACC, helping Miami maintain its top-five national ranking. The junior catcher is batting .381 on the season and has notched 59 hits and 51 RBIs for the Hurricanes. With eight doubles and 11 home runs, he has recorded a team-leading .645 slugging percentage. Collins has shown phenomenal plate discipline with 62 walks, good for a .552 on-base percentage.

Touted as one of the top prospects in the 2016 MLB First-Year Player Draft, two-way player Will Craig recently received All-ACC first team honors for the second consecutive year. At the plate, Craig led the league in RBIs (62) and slugging percentage (.772), tying for the lead in home runs (15) and finishing second in batting average (.392) and on-base percentage (.537). He also posted a 1.99 ERA on the mound, earning two wins and six saves as the Demon Deacons’ closer.

Catcher Brett Cumberland leads the Pac-12 in home runs (15) and has a slugging percentage of .699. Cumberland was named Pac-12 Player of the Week on May 16. He finished his sophomore campaign with a .356 batting average, 58 hits and 49 RBIs.

Nick Feight had a breakout season for UNC Wilmington, leading the Seahawks to their third CAA title in the last five years. Feight batted .362 with 19 home runs and led the nation with 85 RBIs. His impressive campaign helped UNCW to the No. 1 seed in the CAA Tournament.

Jameson Fisher has notched an impressive 80 hits for Southeastern Louisiana, including 16 doubles, two triples and 10 home runs. During the regular season, he led the Lions in batting average (.449), RBIs (60) and slugging percentage (.730). His speed on the bases has been a huge asset to Southeastern Louisiana’s 36-win season, as he is 14-for-21 in stolen-base attempts. Fisher is a two-time Southland Conference Hitter of the Week selection and was named the league's 2016 Player of the Year.

Auburn junior outfielder Anfernee Grier batted .366 on the season with 12 home runs and 41 RBIs. He finished the regular season ranked among the SEC leaders in average (4th), hits (87, 2nd), runs (56, 1st), homers (2nd) and total bases (137, 1st). Grier was named to the All-SEC second team and the league's All-Defensive team in 2016.

Thomas Hackimer has been one of the top closers in college baseball this season, boasting a 0.72 ERA, the lowest among all semifinalists. He has tallied eight saves in 26 appearances for St. John’s and allowed only four runs off of 15 hits. In 49 2/3 innings pitched, Hackimer has struck out 67 batters while walking only 18. He has limited opposing batters to a .094 average.

A preseason All-America choice by D1Baseball and Perfect Game, Dakota Hudson consistently ranks among the top 40 prospects for the 2016 MLB First-Year Player Draft. His 9-3 record helped propel the Bulldogs to their first outright SEC regular-season championship since 1989, and his 2.29 ERA and 101 strikeouts rank among the best in the conference. Hudson became just the third Bulldog in history to earn SEC Player of the Week honors three times in a single season.

A 2016 All-ACC first team selection at starting pitcher, Connor Jones went 11-1 with a 2.05 ERA as Virginia’s Friday starter in 2016. He led the ACC in innings pitched (92 1/3) and tied for first in wins (11) and complete games (3). Jones notched a league-best nine wins in conference play this season, and his 22 career wins are tied for fourth in program history.

Eric Lauer has been one of the most dominant pitchers in the nation in 2016, striking out 116 batters in 95 innings. Lauer's 0.76 ERA helped Kent State to the No. 1 seed in the MAC Tournament. He tossed a no-hitter against Bowling Green on May 13 and has struck out at least 10 batters in six starts this season.

Sophomore Brendan McKay once again finds himself in consideration for the Golden Spikes Award as a two-way player. McKay batted .338 and won 11 games on the mound with a 1.99 ERA and 105 strikeouts in 90 2/3 innings. He was recently named to the All-ACC first team as both a starting pitcher and designated hitter/utility player.

Two-way player Sheldon Neuse recently became just the second player in the history of the Big 12 to be selected unanimously to the all-conference first team three times. Neuse led the Big 12 in slugging percentage (.672) and ranked second in batting average (.376). His 10 home runs and 46 RBIs are both tied for third in the league, and his 15 doubles and five triples are tied for first in the Big 12. On the mound, Neuse notched a 4-1 record with five saves. The junior had an ERA of 1.40 and recorded 19 strikeouts in 19 1/3 innings pitched.

Recently named West Coast Conference Pitcher of the Year, A.J. Puckett has been the ace of Pepperdine's pitching staff in 2016. The junior boasts a 1.07 ERA and has held his opponents to just 60 hits and 19 runs in 92 1/3 innings. He has totaled an impressive 93 strikeouts and has only walked 22 batters. Puckett finished the regular season with a 9-3 record on the mound for the Waves.

Preseason All-America Heath Quinn immediately earned a spot in the Bulldogs’ starting lineup as a true freshman in 2014 and has since started all 173 games of his college career. Recently named to the All-SoCon first team as an outfielder, Quinn hit .350 to lead the Bulldogs offense and reached base safely in a team-best 15 straight games. He hit safely in 21-of-24 conference games and notched a .379 batting average in league play with six home runs, 27 RBIs and 23 runs.

Washington's Troy Rallings, a leading contender for the Pac-12 Pitcher of the Year award and a Dick Howser Trophy semifinalist, leads the league in ERA with a mark of 0.89. Rallings allowed only seven runs and didn't give up a home run all season. With just 12 walks and 60 strikeouts in 61 innings, Rallings finished the season with a 4-1 record.

An All-SEC selection, Nick Senzel has been a key player in Tennessee’s lineup all season. He tallied an impressive 73 hits for the Volunteers, including 25 doubles, one triple and eight home runs. Senzel leads the team in batting average (.354), runs (56), RBIs (59), slugging percentage (.602) and on-base percentage (.459). His speed on the bases has proven beneficial for the Volunteers, as the junior is 24-for-28 in stolen-base attempts this season.

Vanderbilt ace Jordan Sheffield went 8-4 with a 2.38 ERA on his way to earning SEC All-Defensive team honors with just one error on the season. Notching a team-high 101 strikeouts, he earned SEC Pitcher of the Week honors three times during the season and amassed a 24-inning scoreless streak over three starts.

Texas A&M third baseman Boomer White batted .411 with 41 runs scored, four homers and 41 RBIs. White set the SEC record for hits in league play with 57 knocks in 30 games and became the first-ever Aggie to be named SEC Player of the Year. In SEC action, White led the league in batting average (.467), on-base percentage (.524) and slugging percentage (.648).

Winning each of his last four starts in the regular season, Kyle Wright was named SEC Pitcher of the Week for his three-hit, 10-strikeout performance at No. 1 Florida on May 14. He leads the Commodores and the conference with a 1.76 ERA entering the SEC Tournament.